Dewey’s Read-a-Thon…updates, musings and more

Saturday, October 18th 2014

WELCOME…to my official Dewey’s Read-a-Thon progress post! This is my very first year taking part in this reading extravaganza and I’m super excited to join in the fun. This is actually my very first 24-hour reading event in general, so I’ve promised myself I would take it easy this time around. I want to be able to take it all in and have fun, so that way I’ll be an expert by the time the next one rolls around.

All that being said, here is my stack of reads for the event and, as you can see, I’m being super conservative since I don’t want to get in over my head. I’ve already started Winterspell and am about halfway through, but wanted to include it as I’m really enjoying the book and didn’t want to put it aside.

I don’t plan on reading alllll 24 hours but hope to put in a solid 12 hours if I can. If I somehow manage to blast through the books pictured above, I’m thinking of adding Boomerang or another R.S Grey book since I loved Scoring Wilder so much! I already have With This Heart loaded on my Kindle and it’s been calling my name.

So those are my preliminary plans for the read-a-thon, but I’m giving myself permission to just fly by the seat of pants and see what happens. Who knows…maybe I’ll end up reading ALL OF THE BOOKS! Orrrr…maybe I’ll just end up napping all day.

Progress Updates (read from the bottom up)

Hour 15…I’m tapping out!

Well, technically, I tapped out about 4 hours ago when I went on my dinner break! Now that the clock is creeping closer to midnight I just don’t know if I have it in me to start another book. Kind of feel like I failed since my goal was three books, but I’m proud of the progress I did made and had a lot of fun with everyone! Good night all my fellow book worms and enjoy the rest of the read-a-thon!

Books Read: Winterspell by Claire Legrand & Losing It by Cora CarmackPages read since last update: 100Total pages read: 530Total time read: Not a clue! Officially I started at 9am but got distracted a LOT so it’s hard to say how many actual hours I read.

Mid-Event Survey

3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon?

Nantucket Blue is next up on my list and I’ve heard great things about it!

4. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those?

Oh man….soooo many interruptions! I couldn’t help but cruise Twitter for 20-30 minutes at a time to get caught up, and also spent a lot of time checking out blogs and Instagram. What can I say? I’m easily distracted!

5. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far?

How much more slowly I read! LOL!

Hour 11…Dinner bell!

I’m happy to report that I’m progressing MUCH faster with book number two! I’ve been reading for about two hours and I’ve only got 100 pages left in the book! Very gratifying!

I’m going to take a break to cook dinner and relax for a bit. But I’ll be back at it later tonight! See you all soon!

Currently reading: Losing It by Cora CarmackBooks Read: Winterspell by Claire LegrandPages read since last update: 150Total pages read: 430Total time read: LOL…no clue actually! Started the read-a-thon at 9am EST (an hour late boo!) and it’s not almost 6:30pm EST. I’ve been taking lots of social media breaks and also to spend some time with my poor neglected hubby!

Hour 9…Having a blast!

FINNNNALY…just finished my FIRST book of the read-a-thin! Winterspell was awesome and Claire Legrand is a genius! Out of the 8 hours since I started in on this read-a-thon, I’ve probably only actively read for about 4.5 hours. Which means I’m averaging about 60 pages an hour and that’s typical for me. Most importantly, I’m having a blast and it’s been great to interact with so many enthusiastic readers online. So with that I start book two of the read-a-thon…Losing It by Cora Carmack!

Hour 6 (I think??)…Break time!!

Phew…ok!!! Officially we’re in the second half of hour 6 of the read-a-thon and I’ve managed to read from 9am-1:30pm, with looooots of social media breaks, bathroom breaks, chatting with the hubby breaks…you name it. I’m the queen of breaks! What can I say…I’m easily distracted!

It’s almost 2pmEST and I’m off to make some lunch, but I’ll be back in a couple of hours with an update. Hoping to report that I’ve finished book one by then!

Hour 4…distracted reader is distracted

So, I’ve been reading for two hours now (thanks to my late start) and have only read about 75 pages. I blame this on Twitter…I can’t stay away since I want to be kept up to date on all things read-a-thon!

I need to find a good rhythm of reading & checking in on social media.
Any suggestions?

Good news though! My husband just got back from the store and brought me my favorite candy as fuel for reading. Does this man know me or what?

Hour 1…WHO forgets to set their alarm on read-a-thon day??
This girl!

Welp…I’m officially late! Overslept and I’m totally freaking out feeling lame-o! I mean really? Of course I’m the girl who totally flakes out and doesn’t set their alarm on the morning of a huge event like this! Oh well, moving on, I decided that even though I’m a bit late still want to take part in the Opening Meme, so here goes…

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?

I’m joining everyone today from beautiful New England! Good thing it’s cold and dreary today or else I would be really tempted to get outside and enjoy the last days of autumn! But thankfully it’s the PERFECT day to snuggle under the covers with a good book!

2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?

Hmmm…great question! Is it cheating if I say I’m looking forward to all of them?

3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?

I bought some crackers and fancy cheese and am totally wondering if 8:45am is too early to bust into that!

4) Tell us a little something about yourself!

This is my first year blogging and I am having an absolute blast! Not only have I read some amazing books and met some wonderful people, but I also get to participate in fun events like this!

5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to?

I’m most looking forward to all the interaction and fun I’ll be having with other readers!

I tend to check social media periodically… and I’m doing updates every 4 hours or so online. Partly to be social, and partly to keep myself awake and motivated to keep going!

Oh and don’t worry – I’ve definitely slept through the early hours of the readathon before 🙂 If the honeyman didn’t have to get up early this morning, I might not have made it out of bed myself. Happy reading today!!

I envy you your dreary weather! It’s way too warm and sunny here but I’m going to get some reading done outside. It can be tricky to stay focused with the social media but I go in sprints and then check in online with blogs, twitter, etc. Good luck!